Fast, normally aspirated cars

verityboo

Another suggestion - the Volvo S80 4.4 V8 ?

Hoof_Hearted

Big fan of the MX-5 for reliability. Wouldn't touch an RX-8. How about a VW Corrado?

Herzlos

Horizon81 wrote: »

Spooling up a turbo for 10 mins twice a day is never going to be a good idea.

Maybe I'm mistaken, haven never owned a high powered turbo, but surely you can drive it to/from work without hammering the turbo? And that it'll most likely have some system to prevent damage? I know you may need to leave them to cool down afterwards, but that can be avoided as well.

motorguy

Hoof_Hearted wrote: »

Big fan of the MX-5 for reliability. Wouldn't touch an RX-8. How about a VW Corrado?

Surely falls foul of the "post 2000" parameter?

Retrogamer

Herzlos wrote: »

Maybe I'm mistaken, haven never owned a high powered turbo, but surely you can drive it to/from work without hammering the turbo? And that it'll most likely have some system to prevent damage? I know you may need to leave them to cool down afterwards, but that can be avoided as well.

Indeed. You only need to let the turbo cool down for a couple of minutes max if you've been sitting on full boost for extended periods. Otherwise there isn't a great need to.

k3lvc

Passat W8
Phaeton W12

Nodding_Donkey

Strider590 wrote: »

Not to mention the proper engine shut down procedure that almost no one ever followed, meaning unless it's brand new, it's probably f*****.

It's a car/engine that should never have been sold to the average Joe, a 4 pot can take a lot of abuse, but treat a rotary the same way and it just won't last.

Proper engine shutdown? You mean just turn the key off unless it is cold lol

jaydeeuk1

Strider590 wrote: »

Not to mention the proper engine shut down procedure that almost no one ever followed, meaning unless it's brand new, it's probably f*****.

It's a car/engine that should never have been sold to the average Joe, a 4 pot can take a lot of abuse, but treat a rotary the same way and it just won't last.

The emergency shutdown was for cold engines only, when hot it was fine to shut off as normal.
I'm sure people treat turbo engines worse, giving them a thrashing and shutting off as soon as they've pulled up on the drive instead of letting the engine idle for 20 seconds or so.

almillar

No-one has mentioned an Audi TT 3.2 V6 so I'll throw that one in there. Engine sounds fantastic.

MX 5 is a great car but not one I would describe as fast (as in, in a straight line).

RX-8

Reversing, a nightmare.

Don't know what you're used to, but I don't think it's any worse than any other 'sports car' or coupe or saloon - there's a boot sticking out at the back you have to consider, but visibility is good in my book.

Did 25mpg. Used a litre of oil approx. every 2500 miles.

Less for me. Expect 20MPG to avoid disappointment I'd say. It's actually designed to use oil, unlike any other engine you have to top up. If you think checking your oil is hassle this car isn't for you. Arguably, no car is. Dipstick could be designed better though!

Not to mention the proper engine shut down procedure that almost no one ever followed, meaning unless it's brand new, it's probably f*****.

As others have mentioned - No. If you're talking about 'rev it, shut off' that's only necessary if the engine hasn't warmed up, and prevents flooding. It can mean that unburnt fuel goes into the cat, and can be ignited later, causing damage to the cat, so you should avoid it if possible, not do it every time!

It's a car/engine that should never have been sold to the average Joe, a 4 pot can take a lot of abuse, but treat a rotary the same way and it just won't last.

The engine's not more fragile (OK maybe it is!), it's different. See what happens when average Joe tries to rev a 4 pot to 11,000 RPM!

aeroblade

The old Honda Prelude with the 2.2 litre VTEC engines were powerful, around 200hp